Adidas offers ecommerce-as-a-service (EAAS) featuring AI agents

Apparel brand Adidas is running Audi Revolut F1 Team, offering ecommerce-as-a-service (shortened as EAAS or ECAAS) and integrating artificial intelligence (AI) agents from technology provider Salesforce.

Adidas senior project manager Dominik Seeberger shared how the retailer leveraged Salesforce technology to launch EAAS, a new business model for Adidas. That unlocked a more than $100 million business opportunity, he said. And Adidas went live with the Audi site in eight weeks. He shared how AI agents enabled Adidas to scale without adding headcount.

Seeberger spoke in a session called “Scaling Ecommerce as a Service with AI and Agents†at Salesforce Connections 2026 in Chicago in early June.

Seeberger said there are “digital disruptors out there like Fanatics. They’re gaining market share through rapid growth of their licensed partner business and ecommerce-as-a-service business. Their services include end-to-end services across more than 200 partners, and many of them are also our partners. And you can imagine, we are not really happy about that.â€

To compete against Fanatics and other marketplace players, he said, Adidas assessed if its business and technology capabilities could offer a similar model. It assessed that it could, he said. Now, Adidas is in discussions with other partners to operate their ecommerce businesses, he said.

Adidas partners with Audi, offering EAAS

Other partners offering EAAS provide product manufacturing, ecommerce operations and global fulfillment, Seeberger shared. For Adidas to remain competitive, he said, it would have to provide similar end-to-end services.

As part of its EAAS agreement with Audi, Adidas offers mutual brand-partner benefits, brand benefits and shielding against competitors, according to Seeberger. That means making its digital service model compelling and providing a premium ecommerce experience. It also means ensuring consistent brand presentation while optimizing merchandising, as well as countering disruptors’ industry expansion to help clients grow market share and strengthen their digital presence.

In the case of Audi, for example, Adidas built out the Audi F1 ecommerce store. The companies launched the store in February. Adidas and Audi already partnered on merchandise, so that made the choice “quite obvious†for Audi, Seeberger said.

“It is an Audi webstore,†Seeberger said. “The consumer wouldn’t realize that Adidas is operating the site. … In easy words, the partner could sit back and enjoy the show. There’s zero lift on their side. We, as Adidas, operate — on their behalf — the web shop. They don’t need to do anything.â€

Seeberger said Adidas can sell into more than 200 countries. It offers global checkout, making 100 currencies available. Additionally, Adidas offers 24/7 customer service, which includes both email and chat, he said.

“And, of course, we have global logistics in place for Audi,†Seeberger said. “We are fulfilling from Germany across the globe into more than 200 destinations worldwide.â€

How Adidas uses AI agents to enable EAAS

At the moment, Seeberger said, Adidas has just one merchandiser, one computer scientist and one site operations person. Adidas is only about to scale its EAAS further if it uses AI agents, he said.

It is already working on building AI agents for Audi, including one for merchandising. Adidas is building out those AI agents using Salesforce’s Agentforce offering.

Andreas Kasper, an account director at Salesforce, presented at the session with Seeberger. Kasper said having one brand can make merchandising “quite easy.â€

“But if you have 20, 30 different sites and you need to handle every site with one person, it’s not possible,†Kasper said. “So either you hire an army of merchandisers, or you use AI. Our merchandising agent uses natural language to strategically influence search rankings, automatically boost or bury products with agentic rules. It isn’t a custom build. It’s a template.â€

To run hundred-million-dollar businesses with lean teams, “you need a lot of  hands, and this means a lot of AI technology.â€

Seeberger and Kasper showed a demo of how the Adidas Agent for shopping works on the Audi F1 ecommerce website. In the demo, the user asks for a T-shirt. The agent asks for a style the user is looking for, such as short- or long-sleeve and preferences regarding color and design. The user answers that they would like a short-sleeve, gray shirt. Then, the Adidas Agent recommends three hyperlinked options and recommends a size based on the user’s previous purchasing behavior, asking if it should add one of the items to the user’s cart.

Andreas Kasper, account director at Salesforce, demonstrates how the Adidas Agent on the Audi F1 ecommerce website assists shoppers. | Image credit: Salesforce Plus video screenshot

The user also asks to return an item. Adidas Agent requests an order number and email, but the user only submits an email. Then, the agent shows several orders and the user says to return the second one listed. At the end, the agent indicates which items are eligible for returns.

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